This week on The Business of Watches, we’re in Hölstein, Switzerland, near Basel, at the peach-rose colored headquarters of Oris to talk to Rolf Studer, the brand’s Chief Executive Officer. One of the 50 largest Swiss brands by sales, Oris is a true independent, making mechanical watches at fair prices, conveying the brand’s unique spirit.
Its history dates back to 1904, with boom times in the 1960s that were kick-started by the tireless legal and lobbying work of Dr. Rolf Portmann, an Oris executive (and honorary chairman today), whose efforts led to overturning the Swiss Watch Statute in 1966 that had prevented Oris and many other brands from using Swiss lever escapements in their watch movements.
Andy Hoffman
2026-05-06 15:00:00